Peyton Krebs' fight might be a sign the Sabres are becoming a 'real team': 5 takeaways
Peyton Krebs' actions to defend Jiri Kulich sparked the Buffalo Sabres' rally in a 4-3 win over the Vegas Golden Knights.
As Jiri Kulich lay on the ice in distress Saturday afternoon, Peyton Krebs darted toward Brett Howden and challenged the Vegas Golden Knights' winger to a fight.
Krebs dropped his gloves, grabbed hold of Howden’s jersey and absorbed a few punches before the two wrestled to the ice. On the next shift, Sabres winger Jordan Greenway challenged the Golden Knights’ toughest player, Keegan Kolesar, to a fight.
Sabres center Peyton Krebs fights with Golden Knights center Brett Howden after the opposing player hit Jiri Kulich, left, on Saturday. Joed Viera/Buffalo News
The punches thrown by the two Sabres were overshadowed by Rasmus Dahlin’s game-tying goal with 14 seconds left in regulation and Alex Tuch’s shootout winner in the come-from-behind 4-3 victory in KeyBank Center. But the message sent by Krebs was a sign they are becoming a team that won’t tolerate a vicious hit like the one that knocked Kulich out of the game.
“That is what we need every response, every instance,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said proudly after his team had 37 shots on goal. “It was missing earlier in the year, the Devils game. That’s an automatic in and love what Krebs did.”
Krebs was given an extra 10-minute game misconduct and two-minute penalty. The Sabres didn't care. They killed the Golden Knights' power play and eventually began their comeback.
There are only 17 games remaining in one of the most disappointing and confounding seasons during the Sabres’ NHL-record playoff drought. They’re still last in the Eastern Conference at 26-33-6, and 2-6-1 in their last nine games, but each game is an opportunity to build toward 2025-26.
Jason Zucker, 33, who signed a two-year contract extension last week, told reporters the mission is to solidify their identity as a team and achieve the consistency that has eluded them throughout the season. His 19th goal of the season, and 10th on the power play, tied it 2-2 in the third period.
Former Sabres captain Jack Eichel put Vegas ahead again with only 2:33 remaining in the third period, and Dahlin tied it on a slap shot after Tomas Hertl foolishly turned the puck over while trying to set up Eichel for an empty-net goal.
"I just think a total lack of respect, probably most of the night," Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy said when asked what cost his team the game. "But the way it kind of ended, probably sums that up."
The Sabres also need to prove that the events of Feb. 2 won’t happen again. No one acted when Tage Thompson was concussed on a blindside hit by New Jersey's Stefan Noesen. None of the Sabres sent a message until a few nights later, when defenseman Dennis Gilbert fought Columbus Blue Jackets enforcer Mathieu Olivier.
Gilbert is gone, and so is Dylan Cozens, who fought Jesperi Kotkaniemi at the start of a recent game in Carolina. Both Sabres were traded to Ottawa for Josh Norris and Jacob Bernard-Docker. The decision to not add toughness before the NHL trade deadline last week raised more questions about how the Sabres would respond if another hit happened. They answered emphatically in back-to-back games. Tuch and Thompson fought Wednesday in Detroit to stick up for Jacob Bryson and Norris, respectively. The Sabres had 83 penalty minutes in the 7-3 loss to the Red Wings.
“You clearly see we’re a bit of a different team now with Krebs today, 'Greener,'” said Dahlin, whose 12th goal of the season stunned Eichel and the Golden Knights. “We’re stepping up for each other, and now we look like a real team now. This is a start of something good, I think.”
It wouldn’t have been as important this time if the Sabres failed to rally from a 2-0 deficit. Ryan McLeod cut the deficit to one goal when he snapped the puck between Adin Hill’s legs with 7:47 left in the second period. Thompson and Bowen Byram kept the puck in the offensive zone for Dahlin to fire a slap shot on net, while Tuch screened Hill to create the tying goal.
The Sabres defended as well as they did Monday night, when they beat the Edmonton Oilers 3-2. There were fewer high-risk plays in the offensive zone. Buffalo outworked Vegas on the forecheck. Ruff still saw too many turnovers, including a few crucial mistakes by his captain, Dahlin, but it was the type of mature performance that hasn’t happened often enough for the Sabres this season. They blocked 13 shots, won 70 percent of the faceoffs and limited Vegas to 19 shots on goal.
It's only one game. The Sabres will be tested over the next month. Their actions on the ice Saturday showed that the game in Detroit wasn’t a sign of a team giving up.
“Now, it’s up to us to keep going,” Dahlin said.
Here are other takeaways from the game:
1. Fourth lines
The Sabres need more from their fourth line next season.Krebs, Beck Malenstyn and Sam Lafferty have combined to score 11 goals. Vegas, meanwhile, has 40 goals from Howden, Kolesar and Tanner Pearson. And if the fourth line fails to score, it can’t allow goals like it has in recent weeks. Lafferty was late to cover Howden when the center tapped in Pearson’s pass for a 1-0 lead. It is important to note, however, that Ruff barely uses his fourth line compared to Vegas. Kolesar, for example, averages 13:27 of ice time, compared to Lafferty’s 9:40.
The third period was a snapshot of how Krebs, Lafferty and Malenstyn can impact the game. Lafferty created multiple scoring chances, which earned him a shift in overtime. Malenstyn finished with seven hits. Krebs was pressuring Hertl as the Vegas winger turned the puck over instead of shooting into the empty net.
“Every team needs a guy like him,” Dahlin said.
2. Producing
McLeod, 25, is making the most of opportunities in Buffalo that he never got during his time in Edmonton.The center scored the Sabres’ first goal seven seconds after Pavel Dorofeyev made it 2-0. Vegas defenseman Alex Pietrangelo was preparing to clear the puck during a Buffalo power play when McLeod applied enough pressure to force a turnover, leading to Zucker’s tying goal. McLeod also won 16 of his 20 faceoffs, including the offensive-zone draw before Dahlin’s goal. McLeod has achieved career highs in goals (15) and points (36) in 62 games.
“I’m definitely playing with more confidence,” McLeod said.
3. Defense
The Golden Knights were struggling so badly to create anything offensively that Cassidy changed his lines throughout the game.Eichel had three combinations of linemates. He got to a loose puck in the crease for the go-ahead goal, but only had two shots on goal. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen forced Eichel to shoot wide in overtime and stopped two of three shooters in the shootout. The difference for the Sabres, according to Ruff, began in the offensive zone.
“It’s a recipe for winning a lot of hockey games,” Ruff said.
